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Abusive litigation: the visible half of the problem
🇧🇷 Brazil /Crime & Justice

Abusive litigation: the visible half of the problem

From Estadão · () Portuguese

Translated from Portuguese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

Analysis Sources not specified Context piece
  • The article criticizes the framing of "abusive litigation" as the primary problem facing Brazil's judiciary, arguing it reduces individuals to statistics.
  • It contends that large economic entities, like banks and airlines, are persistent defendants and that their business models often incentivize legal disputes.
  • The authors suggest that the focus should be on the failure of companies to resolve consumer issues before they reach the courts, rather than blaming "abusive litigation."

A recent report on the 12th National Conference on Judicial Cooperation frames "abusive litigation" as the central issue overwhelming Brazil's justice system. However, this perspective, the article argues, risks reducing millions of individuals seeking legal recourse to mere statistical inconveniences, echoing Nikolai Gogol's "The Overcoat" where bureaucratic indifference crushes a citizen's plight.

We carry the concern that we are re-enacting the plot of this Russian tale on a national scale.

— Article authorsThe authors express their concern about the current situation in Brazil's justice system.

The authors express concern that this narrative, focusing on "abusive litigation," benefits those already privileged by political and economic power. They question the methodology behind claims, such as the estimate that São Paulo's Court of Justice spends over R$2 billion annually on abusive demands. The article posits that high volumes of consumer lawsuits do not automatically equate to abuse, and that the majority of these conflicts are genuine.

Volume is not synonymous with abuse; and the majority of conflicts that reach the Judiciary are real.

— Article authorsThe authors challenge the direct correlation between the volume of lawsuits and abusive litigation.

Furthermore, the piece challenges the notion that large litigants, such as banks, telecom companies, and airlines, are merely occasional victims of opportunistic lawyers. It asserts these entities are "contumacious defendants" and that their business models may even profit from legal disputes. Evidence cited includes over 286,000 air travel cases in 2025, with less than a third resolved through customer service channels, suggesting a systemic failure by companies to address issues before they escalate to litigation.

Banks, telephony, health plans, and airlines are not occasional victims of legal opportunism; they are persistent defendants.

— Article authorsThe authors identify major economic entities as frequent defendants in lawsuits.

The article concludes that the real problem lies not with the courts' "door," but with companies' doors, where consumer issues often go unresolved. It suggests that the "lucrative illicit" model, where violating rights and facing litigation is cheaper than compliance, needs to be addressed. The authors advocate for a focus on the incentives driving these disputes, rather than solely on the volume of cases reaching the judiciary.

Now, if more than two-thirds of consumers cannot even resolve their problem through the supplier's own channels, what is failing is not the door of the Judiciary; it is the door of the company.

— Article authorsThe authors point to corporate customer service failures as a root cause of litigation.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Estadão in Portuguese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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